Donald Trump says he has no plans to sell Trump Media shares

Former President Donald Trump said Friday that he “absolutely” will not sell his shares Trump Media & Technology Group as his window to do so approaches.

“The reason I built it is because I don’t want to silence my voice,” Trump said during a news conference at his golf course near Los Angeles. “A lot of people think I’m going to sell my shares, you know, they’re worth billions of dollars, but I don’t want to sell my shares. I don’t need money.”

Trump’s stake in the public company behind his right-wing social media site Truth Social is under a six month lock-in period this could end as early as September 20 – if the stock stays above $12 for any 20 trading days starting August 22. At that point, Trump could sell all or part of his shares. If the stock falls below $12, then the first day Trump could sell would be September 25, regardless of the stock’s value.

When Trump gets the green light, he will be able to offload his 114.75 million shares of Trump Media, or about 60 percent of the company’s outstanding shares. Republican presidential candidate will earn over $2 billion from the sale of shares — although the value of those profits depends on the share price.

“As long as my voice is there, it’s always going to be good,” Trump added, noting that investors were worried he would sell his shares. “But I have absolutely no intention of selling.”

Shares of Trump Media gained 25% on Friday, hitting $20 a share for the first time since late August. In the minutes after Trump’s comments went public, the stock rose about $4 a share.

John Rekenthaler, vice president of research at Morningstar (MORNING) previously called DJT an “affinity stock” — one that trades on people’s feelings and perceptions of the former president, rather than his business performance. Rekenthaler warned that Trump Media shares “would go to zero or something close to it” if Trump were to lose the presidential election in November.

On Wednesday, for example, stocks fell after Trump found himself playing defense on issues including abortion, often playing into the hands of his Democratic rival and defending himself jingle. In June, the stock rallied on its strength debate performance against President Biden, and after o assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania in July.

The company itself said in regulatory filings that its “success depends in part on the popularity of its brand and the reputation and popularity” of Trump, and that “adverse reactions to (Trump’s) publicity, or the loss of its services, could adversely affect its revenues and results of TMTG operations.”